common jewelweed
Impatiens capensis
It is called 'touch-me-not' because its ripe seed pods exhibit ballistic propagation, exploding open at the slightest touch to fling seeds up to four feet away.
- Scientific name
- Impatiens capensis
- Taxonomy
- Plantae › Tracheophyta › Magnoliopsida › Ericales › Balsaminaceae › Impatiens
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- stable
- Biome
- wetland
- Habitat
- Moist woodlands, stream banks, floodplains, ditches, and freshwater marshes.
- Diet
- Photosynthetic (requires sunlight, water, and soil nutrients)
- Range
- North America, United States, Canada
- Size
- 0.6 to 1.5 meters (2 to 5 feet) tall
- Lifespan
- 1 year (annual)
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Habitat destruction, displacement by invasive species like garlic mustard, and overgrazing by white-tailed deer.
- Safe to approach?
- Harmless and highly beneficial. You can safely touch this plant. The clear sap from its crushed succulent stems is a traditional natural remedy to soothe poison ivy rashes and stinging nettle burns. Do not ingest the plant, as it contains calcium oxalate crystals which can cause mild stomach upset.
Impatiens capensis , the orange jewelweed , common jewelweed , spotted jewelweed , spotted touch-me-not , or orange balsam , is an annual plant native to North America. It is common in bottomland soils, ditches, and along creeks, often growing side-by-side with its less common relative, Yellow Jewelweed ( I. pallida ).
Photo: Michael J. Papay, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
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